Bag closure



May 20, 1941.

BAG CLOSURE R. B. FORTUIN Filed May 3, 1938 INVENTQR ROSLYN B. FORTUIN BY HIS ATTORNEYS Patented May 20, 1941 2,242,857 BAG CLOSURE Roslyn B. Fortnin, Nazareth, Pa assignor, by

meme assignments, to Bag Closure corporation, Nazareth, Pa a corporation of Pennsyl- Application May a, 1m, Serial No. 205,836

30lahns.

This invention is for a new means to close and open containers and bags of paper, fabric, fibre or the like which are used as containers for material. The invention is applicable to bags which are filled through the mouth or through, 5

a valve and it may be applied to the bag either before or after filling, it preferably being applied before filling in the case of valved bags. The invention is particularly usefulin bags for Portland cement.

Many types .of. ,bag closures have heretofore been employed amo'ng'which are the wire tie,

and the tape sewn across the upper end of the bag in .position to be torn 01!. Those skilled in the art will appreciate-that many bags, for example, bags used for Portlandcement, are of relatively expensive construction and it is desirable that theybe savedfor re-use. In order that, the bags-may not be damaged by careless v workmen or hasty attemptsto open the bags it go is essential that means he. provided so that the bags may be opened quickly and with ease. The invention while applicable particularly to bags of fabric, fiber orpaper is also applicable, in

some cases, to containers made of cardboard, or

equivalent material, by inverting the lid.

It isan object of my invention to provide an inexpensive and efiicient closure for a bag. which may be removed quickly and. easily by hand and i I Another object of my invention is to provide I a removable closure of the above type which will be of adequate strength to permit its use on bags or containers of heavy material. 1 Other objects and advantages of my invention ;will appear as it is describedin connection with the accompanying drawing, in which l .is a front elevation view of one form of my invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail, view of one comer -of a bag embodying another form of my inven- -tion;" w

Fig. 3 is a detail view-showing in front eleva "tion'a corner of a bag embodyingstillanother form of my invention;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of 1'18. 3.

The invention is shown as applied (in Figure l) to a bag III of .cloth, paper or any other suitable fiexible material. The bag III is formed with an open-mouth into which the material may be poured, or, it may be formed with an entrance valve (not shown) for the bag contents. The means for closing the bag comprises a cord II which may be of cotton, hemp or any suitable material and may be stitched across the top of the bag by any suitable type of stitching, preferably a double lock chain stitch it which passes through thecord l2 and through both thicknesses of the top of the bag. The cord is carried several inches beyond either or both sides of the bag in order that it may be grasped by hand and torn loose from the bag. In order that this may be accomplished the stitching M should be of less tensile strength than the threads of the bag fabric. Necessarily also the cord,v when stitched to the bag, should be of greater strength than the stitching thread. In other words, when the cord is pulled or jerked from the bag, the

stitch or stitches by which the burden of the I pull or jerk is being home must be of less strength than either the bag fabric or the cord, so that the stitches will rupture but the fabric and cord will not. The narrowness of the cord causes the whole efiort of tearing to be developed upon the first stitches, or on the stitches next adjacent the tear, thus making a construction which combines the advantages of economy and efllcient operation better than prior closures of like purpose.

Preferably the cord will be of substantial thickness, as illustrated in the drawing, to form a cushion for the stitches so that when-the bag {is filled with heavy contents and the stitches are thereby subjected toa rather severe strain, the cushioning effect of the cord will prevent rupturing of any individual threads. This cushion effect is very valuable-in the case of a ravelable stitch, since if a rupture should occur in'this type of stitch, the opening would be likely to enlarge ltself.

Another advantage of the use of a cord is that it permits the use of a strip of paper It, or other similar material, which may bear advertising or identifying memoranda thereon and may be located either beneath the cord and between it and the bag. or on the reverse side of the bag as shown 'in Fig. 2, or both. 'If a strip be used on the reverse side of the bag, as in Fig. 2, the

removal-of the strip after the bag has been opened will accomplish removal of the broken or ruptured stitches. This is an important advantage of the invention particularly in the case of bags which are to be re-used, since the removal of the remainder of the ruptured or torn stitches, individually, is tedious, slow and diiiicult. The paper strips may be of any desired width but preferably will be between 1" and 1 /2" wide.

In Figures 3 and 4 is shown a form of the invention in which the paper strip 20 has'been folded over the top of the bag and is stitched in that position as the bag is closed by means of cords 22 and 24 on both the front and back of the bag, respectively, the same double lock stitching l4 being used as in the form of the invention shown in Fig. 1. The paper strip 20 will act as a seal and prevent sifting of the bag contents and loss through the stitches, particularly in the case of multi-ply paper bags.

An advantage of the double application of the invention, that is to say, the use of cords on both front and back of the bag, is that it results in complete elimination of all stray ruptured threads from the bag when the cords are removed, in a somewhat similar manner, as in the case of Fig. 2 where a paper strip is used on the reverse side of the bag. This removal of stray stitches is a particularly valuable feature when the bags are used for containing food stuifs.

The double application of the invention makes it possible to use the invention on containers which are filled with heavy commodities and where considerable strength is desired in the closing device. The greater strength in the closure is accomplished by the use of a stronger stitching thread and ease of opening is accomplished by the use of the two cords. When the invention is used on both front and back of the bag the cords will be extended beyond either or both sides and will be sewn together to form a single cord. Thisresults in the formationof a loop with the bag mouth contained therein and with rip cords extending therefrom which permit easy rupture of the thread beginning at either or both sides of the bag. When the invention is applied to both front and back of the bag as in Figures 3 and 4 one or more paper strips, bearing advertising or indicating memoranda, such as l6 in Figure 1, may be used in lieu folded strip 20.

The invention may be applied to boxes o fcardboard or other material in which the lid is inverted or recessed, particularly where the boxes are round or of oval shape, in which case the sewing can be continued entirely around the container.

The sewing of the thread in the case of all the containers is doneon special sewing machines capable of sewing double loop or lock chain stitches, or other suitable stitches.

From the foregoing it may be understood that my invention makes it easier to fill bags; preserves the life' of the fabric by decreasing strain thereon and upon the same; permits a greater volume of material in the bag as compared with bags'which were closed by wire ties; makes it easier to handle the filled bags; decreases the cost of opening the bags by the consumer; eliminates the possibility of injury from scratches by the elimination of wire ties; and minimizes the likelihood of damage to the bags through workmen hastily attempting to open them with tools or in any manner which would prevent re-use of the bag.

The invention is adaptable for use in a variety of the single of forms. It may be, as shown in forms of Figs. 1,.

2 and 3. Alternatively, the paper strip of Fig. 2 may be supplemented by another strip between the cord and the bag, or only a strip between the cord and the bag may be used. The form of Figs. 3 and 4 may be varied by omitting the folded paper strip, or by substituting one strip on one side of the bag or two strips on opposite sides of the bag between the cord and the bag. Many other modifications -will occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore I do not limit the invention to the specific forms illustrated, but, I claim- 1. A bag closure for fabric bags which is removable by tearing without damage to the bag comprising a cord stitched entirely across one face of the bag with an extension beyond the side of the bag affording a hand grip, said cord having an appreciable thickness and being resiliently compressible to provide a resilient cushion for the stitches to prevent rupture of the individual stitches by the'strain due merely to the weight of the contents of the container, the portion of said cord clamped by each individual stitch being of greater tensile strength than the stitch itself and said stitching being of less tensile strength than the material of the bag, and said cord being of a width only slightly exceeding the width of the stitches whereby said bag may be opened without damage by tearing said cord therefrom and the entire effort of a tearing action is concentrated on the first stitches at the side of the bag and upon the stitches adjacent the tear as the tearing action proceeds progressively across the bag.

2. A bag closure for fabric bags which is removable by tearing without damage to the bag comprising a cord stitched entirely across one face of the bag with an extension beyond the side of the bag affording a hand grip, said cord having an appreciable thickness and being resiliently compressible to provide a resilient cushion for the stitches to prevent rupture of the individual stitches by the strain due merely to the weight of the contents of the container, the portion of said cord clamped by each individual stitch being of greater tensile strength than the stitch itself, and said stitching being of less tensile strength than the material of the bag and said cord being of a width only slightly exceeding the width of the stitches whereby said bag may be opened without damagev by tearing said cord therefrom and whereby the entire effort of a tearing action is concentrated on the first stitches at the side of the bag and upon the stitches adjacent the tear as the tearing action proceeds progressively across the bag, and a strip sewed to the face of the bag opposite to said cord by said stitches whereby ruptured stitches may be removed from the bag by pulling said strip from the bag.

3. A bag closure for fabric bags which is removable by tearing without damage to the bag-f comprising cords on opposite faces of a bag, a row of stitching sewing both cords to the bag, said cords each having an appreciable thickness and each being resiliently compressible to provide a relatively thick resilient cushion for the stitches to preventrupture of the individual stitches by thev strain due merely-to the weight ofthe con-' tents of said container, the' portions of said cords clamped by individual stitches being of greater tensile strength than the stitches them l selves, and the stitching being of less tensile strength than the material of the bag, said cords extending beyond at least one side of'the bag affording a hand grip and being of awidth only tear as the tearing action proceeds progressively across the bag, said two cords cooperating to remove all ruptured stitches from the bag as the tearing proceeds.

ROSLYN B. FORTUIN. 

